| English Standard Version | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook or press down his tongue with a cord? | 1Can you pull in Leviathan with a hook or tie his tongue down with a rope? |
| 2Can you put a rope in his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook? | 2Can you put a cord through his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook? |
| 3Will he make many pleas to you? Will he speak to you soft words? | 3Will he beg you for mercy or speak softly to you? |
| 4Will he make a covenant with you to take him for your servant forever? | 4Will he make a covenant with you so that you can take him as a slave forever? |
| 5Will you play with him as with a bird, or will you put him on a leash for your girls? | 5Can you play with him like a bird or put him on a leash for your girls? |
| 6Will traders bargain over him? Will they divide him up among the merchants? | 6Will traders bargain for him or divide him among the merchants? |
| 7Can you fill his skin with harpoons or his head with fishing spears? | 7Can you fill his hide with harpoons or his head with fishing spears? |
| 8Lay your hands on him; remember the battle—you will not do it again! | 8Lay a hand on him. You will remember the battle and never repeat it! |
| 9Behold, the hope of a man is false; he is laid low even at the sight of him. | 9Any hope of capturing him proves false. Does a person not collapse at the very sight of him? |
| 10No one is so fierce that he dares to stir him up. Who then is he who can stand before me? | 10No one is ferocious enough to rouse Leviathan; who then can stand against Me? |
| 11Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine. | 11Who confronted Me, that I should repay him? Everything under heaven belongs to Me. |
| 12“I will not keep silence concerning his limbs, or his mighty strength, or his goodly frame. | 12I cannot be silent about his limbs, his power, and his graceful proportions. |
| 13Who can strip off his outer garment? Who would come near him with a bridle? | 13Who can strip off his outer covering? Who can penetrate his double layer of armor? |
| 14Who can open the doors of his face? Around his teeth is terror. | 14Who can open his jaws, surrounded by those terrifying teeth? |
| 15His back is made of rows of shields, shut up closely as with a seal. | 15His pride is in his rows of scales, closely sealed together. |
| 16One is so near to another that no air can come between them. | 16One scale is so close to another that no air can pass between them. |
| 17They are joined one to another; they clasp each other and cannot be separated. | 17They are joined to one another, so closely connected they cannot be separated. |
| 18His sneezings flash forth light, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn. | 18His snorting flashes with light, while his eyes are like the rays of dawn. |
| 19Out of his mouth go flaming torches; sparks of fire leap forth. | 19Flaming torches shoot from his mouth; fiery sparks fly out! |
| 20Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke, as from a boiling pot and burning rushes. | 20Smoke billows from his nostrils as from a boiling pot or burning reeds. |
| 21His breath kindles coals, and a flame comes forth from his mouth. | 21His breath sets coals ablaze, and flames pour out of his mouth. |
| 22In his neck abides strength, and terror dances before him. | 22Strength resides in his neck, and dismay dances before him. |
| 23The folds of his flesh stick together, firmly cast on him and immovable. | 23The folds of his flesh are joined together, solid as metal and immovable. |
| 24His heart is hard as a stone, hard as the lower millstone. | 24His heart is as hard as a rock, as hard as a lower millstone! |
| 25When he raises himself up, the mighty are afraid; at the crashing they are beside themselves. | 25When Leviathan rises, the mighty are terrified; they withdraw because of his thrashing. |
| 26Though the sword reaches him, it does not avail, nor the spear, the dart, or the javelin. | 26The sword that reaches him will have no effect, nor will a spear, dart, or arrow. |
| 27He counts iron as straw, and bronze as rotten wood. | 27He regards iron as straw, and bronze as rotten wood. |
| 28The arrow cannot make him flee; for him, sling stones are turned to stubble. | 28No arrow can make him flee; slingstones become like stubble to him. |
| 29Clubs are counted as stubble; he laughs at the rattle of javelins. | 29A club is regarded as stubble, and he laughs at the sound of a javelin. |
| 30His underparts are like sharp potsherds; he spreads himself like a threshing sledge on the mire. | 30His undersides are jagged potsherds, spreading the mud like a threshing sledge. |
| 31He makes the deep boil like a pot; he makes the sea like a pot of ointment. | 31He makes the depths seethe like a cauldron; he makes the sea like an ointment jar. |
| 32Behind him he leaves a shining wake; one would think the deep to be white-haired. | 32He leaves a shining wake behind him; one would think the deep had gray hair! |
| 33On earth there is not his like, a creature without fear. | 33He has no equal on earth-- a creature devoid of fear! |
| 34He sees everything that is high; he is king over all the sons of pride.” | 34He surveys everything that is haughty; he is king over all the proud beasts. |
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